💬
Member Login
Member Login

About James Burgin

Making the Invisible Visible

Interactive Visual Aids Belong in Every Practitioner’s Toolkit

Gut Microbiome — Visual Aid for your Clinic

Practitioner-Trusted

Trusted across Aus/NZ

Expert Support

The Gut Microbiome — A Practitioner's Visual Aid
Thriving Practitioners Visual Aid · Gut Health Education

The Digestive Tract & Its Microbiome

An interactive map of where our microbial community lives — and how prebiotics, probiotics and postbiotics work together to keep it thriving. Designed to guide the conversation between practitioner and patient.

~38 trillion microbes ~1,000 bacterial species Most live in the colon
Where the microbiome lives

Follow the tract — bacterial density climbs as you go

Tap any region of the diagram to explore who lives there and what they do. Notice how the population explodes once we reach the large intestine.

Mouth Esophagus Stomach Small intestine Large intestine(colon) Rectum

Living particles cluster in the colon — the heart of the microbiome.

Microbial density along the tract
Sparse (stomach)Dense (colon)
◐ Start exploring

Tap a region of the tract

Each section hosts a different community — select one to see its population and role.

The microbiome isn't spread evenly. Harsh acid in the stomach keeps numbers low, while the slow, nutrient-rich colon is home to the vast majority of our gut bacteria — which is exactly why fibre and fermentation matter so much.

    👆 Click the mouth, stomach, small intestine, or colon to begin.

    The core concept · feed, seed, produce

    How the three "-biotics" connect

    The simplest way to explain it to a patient: prebiotics are the food, probiotics are the gardeners, and postbiotics are the harvest that nourishes the gut lining and beyond.

    Prebiotics

    The Food

    Plant fibres we can't digest ourselves. They travel intact to the colon and become fuel for beneficial bacteria.

    feed
    Probiotics

    The Gardeners

    Live beneficial microbes that colonise the gut, crowd out troublemakers, and ferment the fibre they're fed.

    produce
    Postbiotics

    The Harvest

    Beneficial compounds the bacteria release — short-chain fatty acids, vitamins and more — that heal and protect us.

    Clinical detail · for the practitioner narrative

    Each concept, a little deeper

    The named strains, fibre types and metabolites below give you the language to layer detail in as the conversation invites it.

    Prebiotics

    Non-digestible fibres that selectively feed beneficial microbes

    Common fibre types

    InulinFOSGOSResistant starchBeta-glucansPectin

    Food sources

    Chicory rootGarlic & onionLeekAsparagusGreen bananaOatsLegumesCooled potato/rice
    Mechanism: Resist digestion in the upper tract and reach the colon intact, where they're fermented selectively by Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli. A varied fibre intake supports a more diverse microbial community.

    Probiotics

    Live microorganisms that confer a health benefit in adequate amounts

    Key genera & strains

    L. rhamnosusL. acidophilusL. plantarumB. longumB. lactisS. boulardii

    Fermented food sources

    YoghurtKefirSauerkrautKimchiMisoTempehKombucha
    Mechanism: Competitive exclusion of pathogens, reinforcement of the mucosal barrier, modulation of immune signalling and lowering of luminal pH. Effects are strain-specific — match the strain to the clinical goal.

    Postbiotics

    Bioactive compounds produced when microbes ferment prebiotics

    Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs)

    ButyrateAcetatePropionate

    Other metabolites

    BacteriocinsB vitaminsVitamin KNeurotransmitter precursors
    Why they matter: Butyrate is the primary fuel for colonocytes, supports tight-junction integrity, and is anti-inflammatory. SCFAs also help regulate appetite signalling and the gut–brain axis.
    In the room · patient-friendly framing

    Four ways to anchor the conversation

    1

    It's a garden, not a battlefield. We're not trying to sterilise the gut — we're cultivating the right balance of helpful residents.

    "Think of your colon as a garden bed full of microbes."

    2

    Prebiotics are the compost. Without fibre to feed them, even the best probiotics can't flourish or stick around.

    "You can plant seeds, but they need feeding to grow."

    3

    Probiotics are the new seedlings. Fermented foods and supplements reintroduce beneficial species and help them re-establish.

    "Fermented foods are like planting fresh seedlings."

    4

    Postbiotics are the produce. When the garden thrives, it yields compounds like butyrate that nourish the gut wall and calm inflammation.

    "A well-fed garden gives back a healthy harvest."

    Vote for more handy practitioner resources like this one HERE…

    Thriving Practitioners · Gut Microbiome Visual Aid — a practitioner-led patient education tool · thrivingpractitioners.com

    For educational use within a practitioner–patient consultation. Microbial counts are approximate orders of magnitude drawn from general literature. This resource does not replace individualised clinical assessment or diagnosis.